Did AIT Drill Sergeants make that much of a difference?

SFC Michael Hasbun — Tue, 28 Jan 2014 09:47:16 -0500

Being stationed here at FT Lee, I get to hear the great "Platoon Sergeant vs Drill Sergeant" debate at least twice a week. Now, I will admit, I didn't switch branches to the Army until 2005, so my experience with this is very limited.

Now, I hear all the time that the AIT kids were far more disciplined with the Drill Sergeants, that better Soldiers were produced, etc... I also hear the very same thing about the Platoon Sergeants.

So my question to you guys is simply; which is true in your opinion?

On my end, I have no idea. I've been hearing complaints about "nasty Army Soldiers" since 1999, and I'm still hearing them now, so from my perspective, the switch doesn't appear to have changed much of anything.

Have you seen a massive change since the adoption of Platoon Sergeants?

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 28 at 2014 11:50 AM

1SG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 28 Jan 2014 11:50:30 -0500

I believe they don't, but the Drill SGTs training is tailor differently from the Platoon SGTs. if I'm wrong can someone please correct me and explain what are the differences in their training.

Response by CSM Private RallyPoint Member made Jan 28 at 2014 11:52 AM

CSM Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 28 Jan 2014 11:52:54 -0500

I can tell you that there shouldn't be a difference and if there is then someone isn't doing their job correctly.  I was an AIT Drill Sergeant and now I am a BDE CSM for the very same unit that now has AIT PSG's.  The only difference is that they don't have a DS hat or receive the pro pay for the position.  The AIT PSGs are doing the same exact job I did 12 years ago as a Drill Sergeant.  There is no difference in level of respect, in fact a lot more respect can be gained for the NCO Corps if the AIT PSG is doing their job right.  They can still earn respect as an NCO without the fear and intimidation of the hat and screaming. They do it from the perspective of being a caring leader who holds Soldiers accountable for their actions and discusses the consequences for doing dumb stuff.  I am not knocking on Drill Sergeants because they have a hard job of turning civilians into Soldiers, but PSGs have the hard job of reinforcing what was taught in BCT and geting them ready for their first unit of operation.  We can debate this all day long from both sides, but bottom line is that a DS and a PSG are NCOs that have a job!  How well they do it depends on how the Soldier turns out.  If done correctly they both make a difference.   

Response by 1SG Michael Blount made Apr 14 at 2014 1:36 PM

1SG Michael Blount — Mon, 14 Apr 2014 13:36:57 -0400

Removing the campaign hat from AIT NCOs was one of the worst thing the Army did. PSGs just don't have the juice.

Response by SFC Christopher Walker, MAOM, DSL made Apr 15 at 2014 9:33 AM

SFC Christopher Walker, MAOM, DSL — Tue, 15 Apr 2014 09:33:33 -0400

AIT Drills made a hell of a difference. BCTand AIT felt the same when I went through. Drill Sergeants in AIT kept everyone in line just like it was in BCT. My AIT Drill Sergeant is the reason why I became a Drill Sergeant. He was the standard bearer that I wanted to be like. To be honest, the Army shouldn't bring them back. If the NCOs/AIT Platoon Sergeants set and enforce standards, AIT Soldiers would be more discilpline when they arrive at their first duty station.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 15 at 2014 4:21 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 15 Aug 2014 16:21:14 -0400

I feel there is a big difference between the Drill Sgt and AIT Platoon Sgt debate. The gap however, from what I read is slowly closing due to the AIT Plt Sgt and Drill Sgt working side by side to train soldiers going through AIT and mentor ship as well as leadership styles are evolving to what the soldier needs as they transition from BCT and AIT and eventually a real unit. Prior to the changes, the Drill Sgt instilled that hard nosed discipline and discouraged soldiers from complacency and keeping the training mindset in tow at all times. Up until now, the AIT Platoon Sgt didn't have that mentality. Complacency ran a little rampant when I went to ALC in Ft Lee. The Platoon Sgt's weren't enforcing the standard as well as a Drill Sgt would. The soldiers weren't responding and felt to laxed in standards and their conduct followed suit. I'm glad the gap is closing and look forward to the soldiers coming down the pipe and see where they stand from there.

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 18 at 2014 4:06 PM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 16:06:19 -0500

When I enlisted, Basic Training was Drill Sergeant and when I hit AIT we had TAC Sergeants. Apparently it was a 6 month beta test to see if it worked. Out of the 3 Drills, 1 of them actually taught me a lot more. (Even though he was 6 years younger than I was at the time) the 1 TAC my platoon had actually was there maybe 4 of 7 days in the week. I liked the idea of TAC Sergeants but I didn't learn much from them, and I got in trouble a lot for the slip of " Yes Drill Sergeant " more than I care to recall.